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 rivate and Special Laws are enacted to address particular persons or
groups of persons, such as a municipal or business corporation. Because they are limited in scope, they are not codified in the Maine Revised Statutes. They
are published in the Laws of Maine. Private and Special laws are numbered separately from other types of
legislation. They are assigned a consecutive chapter number, and the numbering begins again with the start of each new Legislature. The Legislature
may amend a Private and Special Law at any time, so it is necessary to search all
the Private and Special Laws to find not only the original act but also any amendments to it.
Indexes
A variety of indexes provide access to Private and Special Laws from 1820,
when Maine became a state, to the present. Indexing is by the name of the body
addressed in the legislation— there are no general subject entries. For example,
it is not possible to look under a heading such as Sewer Districts for a list of all
those incorporated by Private and Special Law. You would need to look under the proper name of the district.
Index to the Private and Special Laws Enacted by the Legislatures of
the State of Maine from 1820 to 1944, Inclusive. Issued as a Supplement to the Biennial Report of
the Attorney General.
Augusta, Maine: 1944. Note that the references are to year and Private and Special
chapter number.
Index to the Private and Special Laws
Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Maine 1944 to 1957. Issued by Frank F. Harding, Attorney
General. References are to year and Private and Special chapter number.
Laws of Maine 1963. Includes a single cumulative index to Public Laws,
Private and Special Laws, and Resolves enacted from 1955 to 1963 which begins of page 1599. References are to the year of the volume of the
Laws of Maine and to page number. There is some overlap with the previous index.
Laws of the State of Maine Cumulative Subject Index and Cross
Reference Tables 1964 through 1988. Augusta, Maine: J.S. McCarthy, 1990. A single index to Public Laws, Private and Special Laws, and
Resolves. References are to the year of the volume of the Laws of Maine and the page number. Bound volume. A paper supplement which begins
with the year 1989 is replaced periodically. Final steps in completing the search of the Private and Special Laws include searching the indexes of
any of the volumes of the Laws of Maine not covered by the latest paper index supplement and searching legislative bills considered by the last
session of the legislature.
Municipal
charters
Municipal charters include the original act of incorporation and any
amendments to that act. Amendments may include changes to the municipal
boundary, as the boundary description is included in the original act of incorporation. The original act of incorporation and changes can be found in the
Private and Special Laws. However, before 1820 Maine towns were incorporated under the Private and Special Acts of Massachusetts. References to these
Massachusetts laws as well as Maine Private and Special Laws to 1940 can be found in:
Counties, Cities, Towns and Plantations of Maine: A handbook of
Incorporations, Dissolutions and Boundary Changes. Portland, Maine: Maine Historical Records Survey Project, 1940.
To update a search for municipal charters it is necessary to use the indexes
mentioned in the previous section. Since 1970 municipalities may also have adopted a document referred to as a
charter under home rule authority given to them in the Constitution of Maine.
The municipality would then operate under the provisions of this document rather than the act of incorporation as amended and general municipal statutes.
Locating Private and Special Laws in
the Laws of Maine set
Private and Special laws are published in the Laws of Maine. They follow the
public laws enacted during the same legislative session. If they were enacted during a special session they may be found at the back of the volume or in the
next Laws of Maine volume, so that Private and Special Laws enacted during 1960 would be found following the Public Laws enacted in 1960 or in the front of
the Laws of Maine volume labeled 1961. All laws enacted at
special session are grouped together. There is no way to tell from the chapter number whether laws
were enacted at special session, but often a higher chapter number increases the
possibility.
Library
services
All of the publications listed in this document are available for consultation in
the Maine State Law and Legislative Reference Library. Library reference staff
are happy to provide any necessary assistance in their use. Users unable to come to the Library may contact the Reference desk by telephone (207) 287-1600
or electronically. Staff can identify and provide photocopies of all the Private
and Special Acts relating to a particular business or municipal corporation. The
usual photocopying and service charges apply.
Obtaining
copies of the publications
Laws of Maine. To be placed on a mailing list for each new paper volume
contact the Office of Revisor of Statutes (207) 287-1650. A single copy is free of charge. For previous years contact the Maine State Law and
Legislative Reference Library at (207) 287-1600. A single copy of the paper volumes is free of charge, but there is a fee for earlier bound volumes. Inquire as
to price.
Laws of the State of Maine Cumulative Subject Index and
Supplement. The bound volume covering 1964 to 1988 is available from the Maine State Law and
Legislative Reference Library for $25.00. The paper Supplement is also available.
Inquire as to price.
Counties, Cities, Towns and Plantations of Maine is available from the Maine
State Archives. Send a check for $11.25 made out to Maine State Archives to: Search Room, Maine State Archives, 84 State House Station, Augusta, Maine
04333. |
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